- PET HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS- Pet CPR
- PET HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS- Pet CPR
Hopefully, you never find yourself in an emergency situation that requires you to perform CPR on your pet. CPR stands for cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and is an emergency treatment that uses simulated breaths and chest compressions to revive the patient. CPR for cats and dogs is similar to human CPR. Learning how to properly do CPR on your pet could be the difference between life and death, until you are able to reach a veterinarian.
If your pet becomes unresponsive, the first thing you need to do is CHECK THE ABC ' s; airway, breathing and circulation.
A( airway): Make sure the animal ' s airway is clear of any obstructions BEFORE starting CPR.
B( breathing): Check to see if the animal is breathing. If it’ s breathing on its own or giving you any sort of resistance, it does NOT need CPR. Check to see if air is coming out of the nostrils and watch for rising and falling of the chest.
C( check for a heartbeat): Lay the animal on its right side and put your hand on the left side of the chest, behind the front leg. If the heart is beating, you should be able to feel it. You can also check for a pulse by putting your hand on the femoral artery, which is on the inside of the hind leg, in the thigh area.
If your pet is still unresponsive, not breathing, or doesn ' t have a pulse, you will need to start CPR. Below are the steps for CPR:
1) Start with chest compressions to get the blood flowing. Lay your pet on their side( if they aren’ t already) and position them so the trachea or windpipe, is straight. Create a line from nose tip to spine. Put one hand on top of the other and intertwine your fingers. Place the heel of your bottom hand on the dog’ s chest. Hand placement will depend on the animal ' s size. Most dogs are considered round or barrel chested( Labs, Golden Retrievers) and compressions are done at the widest part of the chest. To perform compressions on narrow chested dogs( Great Danes, Boxers, Dobermans, Greyhounds) put your hands over the heart, which is directly behind the front leg. " Smooshy faced” dogs with flat chests( Bulldogs, Pugs) should be placed on their back for compressions, if possible. Put your hands on the sternum( breastbone) to do compressions. Small dogs and cats require a more delicate technique, using one hand. Put your thumb on one side of the chest and your fingers on the other and gently compress. Once your hands are in the proper position, lock your elbows and keep your shoulders in line with your hands. When compressing the chest, keep your arms straight and bend at the waist. For medium-large breeds, compress the chest 1 / 3 of its width. Only compress ½ the chest width in small dogs and cats. Allow the chest to fully rebound after each compression. Perform 100-120 compressions per minute. An old trick to keep the proper rhythm is to sing“ Staying Alive” by the Bee Gees or“ Another One Bites The Dust” by Queen.
2) Give rescue breaths. Close your pet’ s mouth, making a seal so no air escapes. Place your mouth over both nostrils and give hard, fast breaths. Watch for the chest to rise as the lungs fill with air, then let it fall back down before giving another breath. Do 30 compressions, then give 2 breaths. Continue the process until the pet is breathing on its own. If there is more than one person available, one could do the compressions while the other gives breaths.
If you ever have the opportunity to take a pet CPR course, you should take advantage of it. Pet CPR would be a great skill to have, just in case.
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Pawsitively Pets-- April